Do You Want To Know A Secret?
by DellyDaaa
Summary: Harry and Draco are together and happy. But then Harry finds out Draco has been hiding something from him, something that could entirely ruin their relationship. Sort of a sequel to one of my other stories, but I'm pretty sure this can be read alone. I explained more inside. Slightest featuring of some really good music. Drarry. HPDM. EighthYear. SOMUCHFLUFF.


**Hello again! Okay so this is sort of a sequel to** _ **Harry Potter's Muggle-Magic Music Contraption**_ **. I'm pretty sure you don't absolutely NEED to read that one first to understand this one, but there are some little tidbits that relate it back to that story. So, I don't know, let me know if you think it makes sense on its own.**

 **This features some music once again, although much less so than last time. The two songs I reference are** _ **Do You Want To Know A Secret**_ **and** _ **Why Don't We Do It In The Road?**_ **both by The Beatles.**

 **Be warned, there is SO much fluff in this, it might cause you to become violently ill (but that's really nothing new for me I suppose). But it also gets rather serious at points. So I'm not entirely sure what genre this is. LOL.**

 **DISCLAIMER: Anything you recognize, both Harry Potter and Beatles related, is not mine. I don't own any of it, and this is just for fun.**

 **Enjoy!**

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 _Do You Want To Know A Secret?_

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"Bloody hell, Harry!"

Harry should have heard the curtains surrounding the bed being pulled open (they made a loud enough noise to disturb anyone's slumber), but that wasn't what woke him. It was Ron's loud, yelping voice that did it.

Although Ron had effectively ruined his chances of getting any more sleep, Harry refused to open his eyes or move a muscle. He was too comfortable and content with Draco's warm body wrapped around him to even think about moving yet. Besides, Draco was obviously still asleep, if the slow rise and fall of his chest was any indication. Harry figured it might not be a good idea to unceremoniously rouse his (sometimes easily irritated) boyfriend. Who knew if he would be forgiven? Even if it was an accident (or, say, _Ron's fault_ ).

"I know you two are _together_ now," Ron continued, sounding slightly revolted, "but do you have to sleep in his bed?"

"Go away, Ron," Harry said groggily, finally opening his eyes to glare at his best friend. "It's Saturday."

Ron ignored him. "Your bed was empty, I didn't know where you were. So, I went to wake Malfoy to ask him if he knew, and I find _this_."

"If you don't like what you see, Weasley, then _stop looking_ ," Draco growled unexpectedly, apparently awake now too. Harry felt him shift slightly so he could press his lips to Harry's bare shoulder. The blond said in a mumble for only Harry to hear, "Merlin, we never should have told anyone."

Harry chuckled. "But if we hadn't, I'd never have known this pleasure of waking up next to your oh so charming self."

"Shut it," Draco grumbled, but there was no bite to it since he was still partially asleep. After a moment of thought, he lifted his head to look at Harry and added, "But I suppose that's true. Good morning."

"Morning," Harry replied with a grin. He placed a hand on Draco's cheek and leaned in, intending to give him a quick kiss. But just before his lips reached their target, Ron snapped again.

"No snogging in front of me! And at least wear a damn shirt next time, both of you!"

"Now where's the fun in that?" Draco said through pouting lips. Harry smacked his arm, but not too hard. Ron mimed vomiting before turning his back on them and heading to the bathroom.

Draco pulled the curtains closed around them again, blocking out the prying eyes of their other dorm mates, before turning back to Harry with a small smile on his face.

"So," he started, "minus the rude awakening from your obnoxious redheaded friend, any thoughts on our first official night together?"

His tone was mocking, like this was a joke and not at all a serious inquiry. But Harry knew Draco well enough by now to know he was actually very anxious to hear Harry's answer to that question. The way he nibbled on his lower lip gave him away. Harry thought he was adorable.

Without hesitation, Harry replied honestly, "I'd say this was a success."

"Oh really?" Draco said with a proud smirk, no longer showing any sign of nerves. He now only expressed immense confidence. "How so?"

Harry shrugged. "You hardly hogged the blankets. You don't move excessively, so I wasn't kicked off the bed or anything like that. And you don't snore… much."

Draco gasped and exclaimed defensively, "I do not snore at all!"

Harry smirked. "You so do. It didn't bother me, though. They were cute, little snores."

Draco growled, and for a second Harry thought he was going to be attacked by his boyfriend. He was sort of right, Draco _did_ attack him. But not in the violent way Harry was expecting. Instead, Draco crawled on top of him and buried his face in Harry's neck. His nips to Harry's skin were a little more painful than usual, but still _very_ pleasurable.

"Take it back," Draco whispered so seductively that Harry nearly gave in.

Somehow, he managed to force out, "I won't lie to you, Draco."

Draco bit down on what he knew from experience to be the most sensitive spot on Harry's neck, then quickly soothed the area with his tongue. Harry moaned deeply and tilted his head back, giving Draco more room to work with. Apparently, Draco was willing to drop the topic of his supposed snoring in favor of trailing scorching, open mouthed kisses down Harry's throat.

" _Fuck_ , Draco…" Harry panted, thinking that this was without a doubt the _best_ way to start the day.

Draco pulled back much too soon for Harry's liking, causing Harry to let out a embarrassing whine in disappointment. But it quickly became clear Draco wasn't finished yet. He flashed Harry a wicked grin, then leaned down to press their lips together. He kissed Harry slowly but thoroughly, and so fucking _passionately_.

"Harry…" Draco sighed into the kiss, somehow managing to roll the R sound in his name in such a way that never failed to send chills down Harry's spine. Draco's hands disappeared into Harry's thick mess of dark hair while his tongue slid smoothly into Harry's mouth, making it impossible for them to say any more. Although, that didn't entirely mute them. The occasional sigh or gasp or moan would escaping them as they continued to snog fervently.

"Merlin, we can _hear_ you!"

"Calm down, Ron."

"Fuck off, Weasley."

"I will not calm down! You're frightening Neville!"

"I'm fine!" Neville's voice suddenly joined into the conversation. He sounded less frightened and more like he simply did not want to be dragged into this.

"Relax, Weasley," Draco said calmly, almost as if he was trying not to upset Ron any further. Harry was still sometimes amazed by how much progress Draco had made with the people he had tormented for years. Harry had never thought he would see Draco Malfoy being nice to a Weasley. But he had witnessed it firsthand a number of times this year. Draco went on in that same gentle tone, "I promise you, Harry and I are not doing anything inappropriate... well, we're not doing anything _too_ inappropriate, at least." And then Draco would say things like that, and Harry would realize that some things would never entirely change. Harry smacked his arm again, but Draco just smirked.

"Whatever," Ron grumbled through the curtains to Harry and Draco. "Just put up a bloody silencing charm and spare us all, would you?" Harry heard him huff one last time before he stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Harry would have been perfectly fine with staying in bed with Draco all day, but unfortunately he had to force himself to say, "I suppose we should get up and ready. We can't miss Hogsmeade today, it's our last trip there as Hogwarts students."

Draco sighed, "If you insist." He rolled sideways off Harry, but remained lying in bed, not fully getting up yet. He began biting his bottom lip again and avoiding Harry's eye. After a few moments of silence, he asked, "So last night... this morning... it was okay?"

Harry smiled reassuringly. "It was great, Draco." He then frowned. "Why, how was it for you?"

Draco flushed, but looked straight at Harry as he replied. "It was perfect."

Harry was shocked by that answer. Draco wasn't usually the type to be so blatant with his feelings, the one exception being when Draco had told Harry he liked him with an exploding confession that ultimately brought them together. So, hearing those words had Harry beaming. He couldn't help but twine his fingers through the hair at Draco's nape and pull him in for another sweet kiss.

This new experience for Harry and Draco had started the previous day. They had decided they would sleep together. And by that they meant the two of them would spend the night in the same bed literally sleeping. So, once the rest of the boys in their dorm had fallen asleep, Harry had crept into Draco's bed. Of course, they had done… _many_ other things… _many_ times before. But this was their first time sharing a bed in the sense that they would fall asleep together and wake up in each other's arms. It was almost silly to think so, but they saw this as a new milestone in their relationship.

It didn't matter much that they had been caught that morning. They had only carried out their plan clandestinely because they had not wanted this 'first' for them to be ruined by endless questioning, and possible mocking, from their peers. While every eighth year student now knew that Harry and Draco were together, they had only been made aware of this relationship very recently.

About a week before, Harry and Draco had announced to the eighth years that they were a couple. For a little over three months they had not told anyone that they were together. But when they had grown tired of sneaking around to see each other, they had decided to share this information with just those few returning students in their own year. It gave them more freedom to be together comfortably, namely in their common room and their dorm. It seemed ridiculous for them to keep it a complete secret any longer, considering how serious their relationship had become.

The others had been, well, _floored_ to learn about this development. But they had thankfully agreed to keep it to themselves. Neither Harry nor Draco wanted to deal with the entire school finding out. Not to mention Draco worried about how his parents would react if it got back to them. He had assured Harry that when the school year was over, he would face them and tell them. Until then, however, he didn't want them to know. Harry could understand that (hell, he was a little terrified of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy) and he didn't mind.

For now, things were good. Great, in fact. _Fucking phenomenal_ _._ Harry had never felt so happy in his life.

After a little more snogging, Harry and Draco reluctantly got out of bed and got ready for the day. They were able to walk down to the Great Hall together (at the very least, the entire school knew they were on better terms now), but even though the eighth years shared dorms, they still sat at their respective house tables during meals. So, Harry went to sit with Ron and Hermione at the Gryffindor table while Draco headed to the Slytherin table.

"We are not discussing what I saw, not to mention _heard_ , this morning, all right?" Ron said the second Harry took his seat.

"You're the one bringing it up again, mate," Harry said with a grin. "I said nothing."

Hermione tore her attention away from whatever book she was reading to roll her eyes. "Honestly, Ron. I don't think it's a big deal. You and I have done similar things before." Obviously, Ron had told her all about finding Harry in Draco's bed.

"But that's you and me! This is _Harry_ and _Malfoy_!"

"Ron, shush!" Harry looked around frantically to make sure no one had heard Ron's outburst. He continued harshly, "The last thing we need is the whole school finding out and reacting like you are."

Ron had the decency to look ashamed. "Fine, I'm sorry. I guess I just need to get used to it…" He cringed before adding, "I need to _accept_ _it_."

"Thank you, Ron." Harry did appreciate his efforts. He smiled dreamily, replaying the events of the previous night and that morning over and over in his mind. "You do need to accept it because he's not going anywhere anytime soon."

Ron groaned, "Merlin, you always get _that look_ on your face whenever you're with him or talking about him. I can even tell when you're _thinking_ about him because of _that look_. Make it stop."

"Sorry," Harry said. But he wasn't really, since the silly smile didn't leave his face. It only began to fade away when he glanced over at the Slytherin table.

A pretty girl with long blond hair and ocean blue eyes was sitting next to Draco. Harry had seen her talking to Draco many times before, but all he knew about her was that she was a sixth year Slytherin. He didn't even know her name. Harry hated how she always gazed adoringly at Draco while lightly resting her hand on his shoulder. Even more than that, Harry hated how Draco always responded to her with his most dazzling smile. That smile made _Harry_ weak in the knees. It shouldn't be directed at anyone else.

Harry shook his head sharply. It was nothing to worry about, he told himself firmly. He brought his focus back to his friends.

"Are you two going to Hogsmeade today?"

"Of course," Hermione replied. "You'll see us for a bit of it won't you? Ron and I have a late lunch planned at Madam Puddifoot's, but I figured we could see you beforehand. Then you can meet up with Malfoy."

"Yeah, sounds like a plan." Harry couldn't resist arching a mocking eyebrow at Ron, who had gone red in the face at the mention of Madam Puddifoot's.

When they were finished with breakfast, Harry told Ron and Hermione to go on to Hogsmeade ahead of him. He assured them he would be along shortly, but first he needed to tell Draco about his plans for the day. His friends eventually agreed to this, and left him alone in the entrance hall to wait for Draco. When Draco exited the Great Hall, he was walking with the pretty blond girl Harry had seen him talking to earlier. Neither of them noticed Harry standing at the foot of the marble staircase.

"So, I'll see you later, right Draco?" she asked, batting her eyelashes up at him.

Draco beamed at her, "Of course, Astoria. I will see you soon."

To Harry's horror, she pushed herself up onto her toes (she was fairly short, while Draco was quite tall) and pressed a quick peck to Draco's cheek. She then disappeared down a flight of stairs that Harry knew led to the Slytherin common room.

The second she was gone, Draco's face hardened and he huffed in apparent annoyance. Harry decided to make his presence known.

"Hey."

Draco jerked, but relaxed upon seeing who had greeted him. He smiled widely as he made his way over to Harry. "I assume you're here to tell me you'll be spending half the day with your friends and the other half with me? Don't worry, I figured as much."

Ignoring his irritation caused by the girl Draco had been with, Harry smiled back at him. "Well, yeah. That's pretty much it. I'll spend the morning with Ron and Hermione, then the afternoon is all for you."

Draco jokingly swooned. "How very kind of you to find time for me, Oh Great Savior."

Harry groaned in aggravation. "Cut it out, you know I hate when people call me those shit names."

After a brief snort of laughter, Draco said, "Fine, fine. I'll stop. Just know that you're far too humble."

As they fell into a comfortable silence, Harry was suddenly struck with the overwhelming urge to grab Draco possessively and snog the life out of him. But he forced himself to resist that urge. They were the only two people in the entrance hall, but he knew someone could walk by at any time. It took Harry a second to realize that this random desire to publicly claim Draco was likely brought on by the interaction he had witnessed between Draco and that girl. It really was bothering him.

Without consciously making the decision to do so, Harry blurted out, "Who was that girl?"

Draco visibly tensed the second Harry asked that question, but he answered casually. "Astoria Greengrass."

"Oh." The name meant nothing to Harry. He tried to sound impassive as he said, "I've seen her around sometimes. You two are friends?"

Draco's pause made it seem like he was choosing his words with extreme care. Eventually, he waved a dismissive hand and said in an overly nonchalant way, "We're friendly." But his posture remained stiff.

Harry didn't like how Draco was acting. He could sense that something was wrong. It almost seemed like Draco was trying to hide something from him, something potentially bad. He couldn't keep himself from sounding incredulous as he said, "You're friendly? Funny, you've never mentioned her before."

Draco shrugged. "Just because we're friendly doesn't mean she's worth mentioning."

"Right, okay." Harry wanted to drop it. Really, he did. But he found himself saying, "She seems to really like you."

Draco replied through a smirk, "Of course she does. I'm extraordinarily charming and devilishly handsome. Can you blame her?"

"Draco…"

"There's no need for you to be jealous, you know," Draco spat out, all traces of amusement suddenly gone from his face.

His sharp change in tone sent Harry fuming. "I'm not _jealous_. I just think I have the right to know why you're so… so… _flirty_ with her."

Draco pondered what to say next, still looking incredibly annoyed. After some time, he said bitterly, "Because I have to be."

Harry had no idea what that meant. "You ' _have to be_ '?"

Draco's only response was a curt, "Yes."

"Do I really need to explicitly ask you to explain—"

"Our families are currently working on a marriage contract for us."

The words came rushing out of Draco's mouth in one harsh breath. Harry swore his heart stopped. He must have heard Draco wrong. He looked into Draco's eyes, praying for a sign that this was some kind of sick joke. But Draco appeared more frustrated than anything else, probably for having let that statement slip out. It seemed like he had not wanted to say it at all. Harry searched his face, but nothing in Draco's expression suggested that he was kidding. Draco attempted to keep his stony mask in place, but through it Harry could sense a lot of guilt and sadness.

"Marriage contract?" Harry asked for clarification meekly once he found his voice.

Draco nodded slowly. "Yes. Arranged marriages are not uncommon among pureblood families."

"So... you're actually going to marry her?"

"Well, it is being arranged… but it's not like I want to marry her." Draco added the last part hastily, like that made it any better.

"Well then don't!"

"You say that like I have a much of a choice! It's called an _arranged marriage_ for a reason. Our parents arrange it and we are forced to follow through with it. It's not exactly what _we_ want."

"She didn't look too torn up at the idea of being arranged to marry you," Harry snapped. "Come to think of it, you didn't look too torn up about it either."

"So it's my fault that the silly little girl is infatuated with me? And I just told you, I do not want to marry her." Draco sneered, something he hadn't done towards Harry in a very long time. "This is exactly why I didn't tell you, I knew you wouldn't understand."

Harry felt his face blanch. "How long have you known about this?"

Draco looked like he wasn't going to answer, but eventually he said, "About a month."

"So, you've been dragging me along for a _month_ , knowing you can't be with me?" Harry yelled. "Were you ever going to _tell_ me?"

"Not until I figured out a solution, because I knew you would react like this," Draco growled. "Harry, Please believe me when I say this is not what I want. I'm trying to find a way out of this."

"You're not trying very hard, clearly," Harry bellowed more loudly than he intended to. "I saw how you were acting with her."

"I _have to_ act that way!" Draco repeated, shouting right back at him. "I have to be nice to her. The Greengrasses are a very respectable pureblood family, and they were never in allegiance with the Dark Lord. The Malfoy name means _nothing_ right now, so having the support of the Greengrasses could mean great things for my family. If we are in their good graces, we might be forgiven for our role during the war. The Malfoy name could be worth something again."

Harry let that all soak in. He _did_ comprehend how hard everything had been for Draco and his family over the last year, for Draco had discussed it with him at length. Harry knew more about the Malfoy family's involvement in the war than most people did, and he knew they wanted to make things right after all they had done. Draco especially was truly remorseful and wanted nothing more than to prove himself changed. Harry fully understood that many of the things that had happened to Draco during those horrible times had been out of his control. Harry had told Draco several times that he did not blame him or hold anything against him. However, it seemed like the majority of the wizarding world would only ever see the Malfoys as Death Eaters who were not worthy of a second chance. Draco and his family feared that would never change.

Ultimately, Draco loved his family. Harry knew he would do anything to help them, including marrying a pureblood witch to gain the support that the Malfoys needed to move on from the war.

"Well, if that's the case, it sounds like there's no way out for you."

"I'm working on getting out of it," Draco reiterated firmly. His fury from just seconds before seemed to morph into full blown panic. He began pacing in front of Harry and muttering frantically. "There's got to be a way out... I mean, there's always the option of flat out refusing to do it and renouncing my name… but that's the last resort… who knows, maybe Father won't even disown me if I do refuse… the Greengrasses might still be willing to help us even if I don't marry their daughter..."

"Draco," Harry interrupted his rambling. He felt his heart breaking as he forced himself to say, "I know refusing to do it is not an option for you. Merlin knows what it would do to your family. Not to mention what it would do to you. Let's be realistic, your father likely _would_ disown you. You'd have no money, no home, nothing. You're not doing that. Not for me."

Draco halted his pacing to glare at Harry. "Would you stop being so bloody _noble_?" His face softened as he moved to stand directly in front of Harry, reaching out to hold his jaw lightly in his hands. "I said I'm working on it, and I am. I will figure it out."

"Forget it, Draco," Harry said, his anger flaring up again. "I'm pissed off at you for not telling me about this sooner, and I'm even more pissed off that nothing can be done to stop this from happening. What do you expect me to do? Stay with you until your wedding day, then let you disappear forever? I can't do that." Harry knew there was only one horrible option left. He took a deep, shaky breath before voicing it. "It makes more sense to end this now."

Draco gaped. "End this now? But, Harry—"

"Don't think I'm doing this because I don't want to be with you. There's nothing I want more than to be with you, actually. But I know if we drag this out any longer, it'll only hurt more in the end. This, right now, hurts enough as it is." Harry swallowed hard as he gently removed Draco's hands from his face. "I have to go. I'll… I'll see you around."

With that, Harry turned his back on Draco and began walking up the main staircase, leaving him alone in the entrance hall. The image of Draco's face in that moment, looking as devastated as Harry felt, seemed to be imprinted in the forefront of Harry's mind as he wandered through the corridors. Harry wanted nothing more than to go back downstairs and hold Draco. He wanted to kiss him and tell him it would be okay. But he couldn't do that, because it wasn't going to be okay. Harry firmly believed that it would only get worse the longer they kept this going, seeing as there was only one possible ending. He would stand by his decision, regardless of how painful it was.

He couldn't deal with the way his thoughts were racing as he made his way aimlessly through the castle. He decided to go to Hogsmeade and see Ron and Hermione as planned. Maybe they could help him get his mind off Draco.

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"Oh, Harry, I'm so sorry," Hermione whispered, resting a comforting hand on his shoulder. "That's terrible."

"Stupid git," Ron grumbled. "He shouldn't have even started up with you if he knew this was going to happen."

Harry didn't feel like saying much else after having explained the situation with Draco to his friends. Hell, he had hardly wanted to explain it in the first place. Ron and Hermione had known something was wrong the second he had sat down with them at the Three Broomsticks, but it had taken them a while to coax the story out of him. Telling them didn't help much. He felt no better being in Hogsmeade with his friends than he had felt when alone in the castle. Still, he did appreciate them being there for him all the same.

"Do you want us to come with you back to the castle?" Hermione suggested.

"No," Harry sighed. "I don't want to ruin your date. When are your reservations?"

"Not for another twenty minutes," Ron answered. "But really, we wouldn't mind."

"No. It's okay." Harry abruptly stood up. "In fact, I think I'll just head back now."

"You're sure you'll be okay?" Hermione asked worriedly.

Harry forced a smile. "I'm sure. I'll see you guys later."

He made his way out of the Three Broomsticks and onto the streets of Hogsmeade feeling worse than ever. It was a gorgeous spring day. The temperature was warm, but there was a slight breeze blowing through the air to make it feel comfortably cool. Students and other patrons to the shops were happily making their way through the town around him. He wished he could be enjoying his last trip to Hogsmeade as a Hogwarts student more than he was.

He decided to head towards the Shrieking Shack instead of going straight back to the castle. Maybe making himself miserable thinking about Sirius would stop him from being miserable thinking about Draco. He nearly laughed aloud at that ridiculous thought. It seemed like his melancholy mood would not be improving anytime soon.

About halfway to his destination, a hand roughly grabbed him by the elbow, causing him to jump dramatically in fright. He spun his head around to find Draco standing next to him, looking furious.

"Come on, Potter. Let's go."

Draco only ever called Harry by his surname when he was very angry. Harry wanted to protest, but suddenly he was being dragged in the opposite direction from the Shrieking Shack by the hand still gripped tightly around his arm.

"Draco, what—?"

"I told you I would figure it out, and I did."

"How…? Draco, what do you mean?" Harry used all his strength to come to a halt, forcing Draco to stand in front of him. "And where are we going?"

"To the post office," Draco replied simply.

Harry's head tilted slightly to the side in confusion. "May I ask why?"

"As I told you, flat out refusal _is_ an option." Draco stomped his foot, looking like a petulant child throwing a tantrum. He tugged at Harry's arm, trying to make him move again, but Harry wouldn't budge. "Now come _on_!"

Harry blinked hard a few times, giving himself a moment to try to register what Draco was saying. "You did say that, but then _I_ said—"

"I had tea with Astoria just now," Draco declared.

Harry did not want to think about Draco and that girl huddled close together in Madam Puddifoot's. "Draco, I don't think I need to hear—"

"I told her there is no way in hell I am marrying her. I told her to forget it. I told her to fuck off, essentially."

Harry gawked for a moment before asking in a hushed tone, "What did she say?"

Draco scoffed. "Nothing crazy. Just some threats to go to her parents, and by extension my parents. Threats about ruining the Malfoy name more thoroughly. I told her to go ahead with all that."

"Oh, Draco you didn't. You can't be seri—"

"Oh, I did, and I am _very_ serious, Potter," he hissed with an evil smirk.

"Okay, so you told Astoria Greengrass to fuck off…" Harry repeated out loud, mostly because he couldn't fully wrap his head around it. He thought he might know the answer to his next question already, but he asked it anyway. "What does that have to do with us going to the post office?"

Draco pulled a piece of parchment out of his pocket and shoved it into Harry's hand. "Read this and make sure it sounds acceptable. I'll admit, I wrote it when I was a bit emotional, so I need you to tell me if it's okay or not."

Harry warily glanced down at the parchment and saw that it was a letter, indeed in Draco's familiar handwriting. Only, it looked sloppier than his usual penmanship, like he had been rushing to get the words out, or like his hand had been shaking as he wrote it. Harry worried when he saw it was addressed to his parents, proving is suspicions correct.

 _Dear Father and Mother,_

 _I am writing to inform you that I will not be returning home at the end of my final term at Hogwarts, and I most certainly will not be following through with any marriage arrangements you have made for Astoria Greengrass (or any other woman) and myself._

 _This might come as a bit of a shock to you, however I do not care. I refused to marry as part of an arrangement. There are a few reasons for my refusal, but by far the most important of those reasons is that I am madly in love with Harry Potter. I fully intend to have him in my life for the unforeseeable future, and there is nothing anyone can do or say that will sway me from this decision._

 _I fully comprehend the possible repercussions I could face from making this choice, but as I said earlier, I do not care. Disown me, disinherited me, banish me from the manor. Do as you see fit, it does not bother me. You will not force me into this. No matter what you decide to do to me, I know I will be okay, because I have Harry._

 _I hope you both are well._

 _With love,_

 _Draco_

Harry read the letter through twice, not quite sure how to react. Finally, he looked up at Draco. He had seen Draco bite his lip many times before when nervous, but he had never seen the blond do it as viciously as he was now. Harry couldn't get a word out before Draco started ranting.

"I know you're going to say I can't do this. But, Harry, I don't care if I'm poor or without a home. I don't care about any of the awful things my father will do to me. I just don't care. I _can't_ marry her. Not when I know I want to be with you. So please, don't say I can't do this. Because just like I said in that letter, there's nothing anyone, including you, can do or say to make me change my mind."

Harry felt like his heart was about to burst out of his chest from the affection he felt for the man in front of him. He looked down at the parchment in his hands one more time. Then, before he could stop himself, he burst out laughing.

"You're completely insane, Draco," Harry said between fits of laughter.

Draco scowled. "What's wrong with the letter?"

Harry took a step closer, so he could wrap his arms around Draco's slender waist and press their foreheads together.

"Nothing. Personally, _I_ think it's perfect. However, I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who will think so."

Draco sagged into Harry's embrace, clearly relieved. "Your opinion is the only one that matters to me."

Harry kept his arms around Draco, but leaned his upper body back so he could see Draco's face better. All laughter was gone from Harry's voice as he said very seriously, "I'm still hesitant to let you do this, but seeing as you already spoke to Astoria about breaking it off…" He took a deep breath before asking, "Are you absolutely sure about this?"

"Positive," Draco breathed out immediately.

Harry kissed him, not caring that they were in the middle of Hogsmeade with a number of people already watching them and trying to eavesdrop on their conversation. Draco didn't seem to care either, since he combed his fingers lightly through Harry's hair and kissed him back with just as much intensity.

When Harry pulled out of the kiss, he smiled and said, "Well, I suppose we should send this letter out now." Draco nodded in agreement.

They extracted themselves from each other's grip, but kept their hands connected as they leisurely walked through the village in the direction of the post office. After only a minute, Draco spoke again.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the arrangement."

Harry glanced sideways at him. "Yes, I'm still a bit angry about that, if I'm being honest. Why didn't you tell me?"

Draco visibly swallowed. "I didn't want you to worry. I _was_ dealing with it. I think part of me always knew it would come to this end, with me refusing to marry and thereby giving up my former life. You're worth it, of course, but I had to at least _attempt_ to break it off without making things worse for my family."

"I understand that," Harry replied gently. "But you should have told me regardless."

"I mostly didn't tell you," Draco added, "because I was anticipating the exact reaction I got from you today."

"What do you mean?"

"I feared you would break up with me, and with good reason." Draco's voice quivered as he continued, "I never meant to make it seem like I was dragging you along. I only did it because I knew I would do whatever it took to stay with you. The last thing I wanted was to lose you."

"I wouldn't have reacted that way if you had told me right away." Although, Harry knew that wasn't entirely truthful, so he then admitted, "Well, okay, I suppose that might have been my reaction no matter when you told me. So I'm sorry for that. But it wasn't because I didn't want to be with you, quite the opposite in fact." He squeezed Draco's hand so tightly that he vaguely wondered if he was hurting the blond. "I don't want to lose you either. The second I found out about the arrangement, I felt like I had already lost you. So I figured breaking this off now would be easier than waiting around for the inevitable end."

Harry could feel how rigid Draco was beside him. He turned his head to look at Draco properly and saw only fears and doubts expressed on his handsome face. He wanted to wash all those worries away and assure Draco that everything was okay. So, he finished with, "But now that this is dealt with, let's not worry about it anymore, yeah? I'm not going anywhere."

Draco too turned his head, so he could stare deep into Harry's eyes. Then, his trademark smirk appeared, and all signs of uncertainty and distress left his face. "You better not go anywhere, not after all I've done for you."

Harry laughed. "I wouldn't dare."

At the post office, Draco sent off his letter with only slightly trembling hands. Once that was taken care of, the two set off to enjoy the afternoon in the village as they had originally intended to do.

The sun was just starting to set as Harry and Draco left Honeydukes with a plethora of different sweets filling their pockets. They slipped into a narrow alleyway between the sweets shop and Zonko's joke shop to get away from all the eyes that had been following them since their very public kiss. There was almost no light reaching the alley, but neither seemed to mind.

It was then that Harry cracked. He had to bring up Draco's letter again. One particular statement in it had been swimming through Harry's mind ever since he had read it. He needed to find out if Draco's words had been sincere.

Harry started by saying, "How do you think your parents will react to that letter?"

Even in the near darkness, Harry could see that Draco was frowning. "Probably not very well. But like I said, I don't care. At the very least, if they disown me, they might be able to salvage their relationship with the Greengrasses. Hopefully their support will continue to help restore the Malfoy name."

"You know, I'll help you in every way I can if they do disown you," Harry said earnestly.

"I know. That's why…" He trailed off, but Harry waited patiently for him to continue. When he did finish his thought, the words were spoken in a low murmur. "That's why I wrote all those things about you."

Harry felt his heart beating wildly in his chest as he replied clearly, but just as softly, "Hmm… I must say, I rather enjoyed reading what you wrote about me."

"You did?" Draco asked almost hopefully. It was obvious that he, like Harry, was thinking about that one incredibly meaningful sentence he had written.

"Oh yeah," Harry confirmed. "I think the best part was when you said something along the lines of, _'I am madly in love with Harry Potter'_."

Harry was positive that if he could see Draco more clearly, he'd find a deep blush on his boyfriend's cheeks. He wished his could see him better, because even though Draco rarely blushed, it was lovely every time he did.

"You think that was the _best_ part?" Draco asked timidly, not quite able to meet Harry's eye.

"Absolutely."

"I meant it, you know," Draco whispered.

Harry reached out to cradle Draco's face in his hands, forcing Draco to look straight at him. " _Listen_ ," Harry sang softly. Although, he was no singer, so he could have just been talking, which was apparently what Draco thought he was doing.

"I'm listening," Draco replied quietly.

" _Do you want to know a secret?_ "

Draco quirked an eyebrow, still not fully understanding what Harry was trying to do. But Harry's next line had Draco's eyes widening in recognition. After all, they both loved the Beatles, and ever since their first night together, they never broke the habit of singing songs that fit their situations.

" _Do you promise not to tell?_ "

"Harry, really? Are we ever going to stop singing Beatles songs to each other?" He sighed in exasperation, but Harry could tell he was secretly pleased by what Harry was doing. Especially with this particular song.

" _Closer,_ " Harry sang huskily, moving his hands down to Draco's hips and dragging him in as close as possible. He placed a kiss just under Draco's ear. " _Let me whisper in your ear. Say the words you long to hear…_ "

Harry pulled back just enough so he could gaze into Draco's eyes as he spoke, not sang, the last line in the chorus. "I'm in love with you."

"Merlin, you're lame." Draco rolled his eyes, but he was grinning all the same. A look of amusement suddenly crossed his face as he said, "Although, now you've got me thinking of a different song."

"Oh really?" Harry asked, "And what song would that be."

Draco sang seductively, " _Why don't we do it in the road?_ "

Harry felt everything from the tips of his toes to the tops of his ears heat up from both the look Draco was giving him and the lyrics he was singing.

"Draco…" Harry whined, for Draco had slid his hands into Harry's robes and was clearly aiming to pull his shirt out from where it was tucked into his trousers.

" _Why don't we do it in the road?_ " Draco repeated, still singing in a gravelly, _sexy_ voice.

"Draco, we can't do this here!" Harry hissed as Draco's hands moved around to his back, then lower. He let out a gasp when Draco squeezed his arse.

Draco leaned in, his lips just barely brushing against Harry's as he whispered, " _No one will be watching us. Why don't we do it in the road?_ "

Harry was seconds away from caving. "I…I…"

But then, Draco stepped back completely, breaking all physical contact with Harry. Harry was sure he looked thoroughly turned on, since Draco threw his head back and cackled wickedly. "I had you seriously considering it, didn't I?"

"Shut it," Harry growled. "It's not my fault your irresistible."

"How sweet of you to say," Draco purred. "While I was kidding about doing it right here right now, I do think we need to get back to the castle and find a more appropriate location to _do it_. Today's events have got me… Well, I really _appreciate_ you."

Harry was sure Draco must be blushing again. Despite the fact that he had written it, confirmed it, and heard Harry say it back to him, Harry knew it was something else entirely for Draco to say those three special words out loud. Harry didn't mind, he'd gotten more from Draco today than he ever would have dreamed of getting. He was entirely content with where they were at, and where he now knew they were going.

Harry replied, "And I hope you know I _appreciate_ you too, especially after all you did today."

Not even a moment later, Draco's lips were on Harry's in a tender kiss. When he pulled back, Draco said with his usual drawl, "Enough with the sappiness. I want you naked and in a bed with me as soon as physically possible."

Harry chuckled, "Yes sir."

With that, they headed back to the castle, so Harry could fulfill Draco's wish.

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 **I hope you liked it, let me know!**


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